6. Why did you come so late?
A few years ago, seeking a new path for tourism, the municipal government invested heavily in creating a nightscape on the riverside. This core area, two or three kilometers along the shore, has seen the most significant changes in Jiangming City over the past decade. Chen Tianhao had suggested several times that he take a stroll after dinner, but Zeng Xiasheng wasn't interested. He had never been one for crowds, and after ten years there, he instinctively distanced himself from the crowd.
However, at this moment, all precautions were no longer important. Zeng Xiasheng ran furiously, through the winding lanes of the residential area, through the crowded pedestrian streets, and finally rushed into the bustling river beach. He lay on the embankment guardrail, trying to find the abandoned dock he remembered in the dark buffer zone below. The call was still going on, but Tang Sizhuo must have tossed the phone aside. He could only hear the sound of the river lapping against the mudflat platform, and his calls to her name received no response.
The steps that had led down to the dock in earlier years had been sealed off. Zeng Xiasheng asked two locals who were strolling, but neither knew how to get down. Seeing his frantic look, a nearby sausage vendor slowly pointed him to a smaller path, saying he could follow the broken fence up ahead. It was a bit more circuitous than before, and there were no people or lights down there, so he had to be careful.
The steps, which had been neglected for ten years, were now even more crooked. Zeng Xiasheng held up his mobile phone to illuminate the way, walked down and looked around, and finally found Tang Sizhuo in a corner at the end of the steps, back against the embankment.
She collapsed on a pile of rubble, completely hidden in the shadow of the embankment. Only two or three meters above her head was the River Beach Square, where tourist girls dressed in Hanfu were noisily vying for the best camera position.
Zeng Xiasheng only then felt the chill of the night air, his sweat and heartbeat cooling in just a few steps. With trembling hands, he reached out to check for Tang Sizhuo's breath; thankfully, he was still alive. The river breeze carried a fishy smell, and only when he leaned in did he detect a strong odor of alcohol. Sensing someone approaching, Tang Sizhuo slowly opened her eyes, but her bewilderment quickly gave way to fear. She pushed away Zeng Xiasheng's hand, attempting to lift her up, and frantically dodged, unaware of the bloody scratches on her palms from the gravel.
This scene evoked the past he most hated to recall. Zeng Xiasheng's heart instantly sank in pain, a sharp pain radiating throughout his chest, making even breathing difficult. He frantically tried to pull Tang Sizhu back, but he didn't dare touch her. He could only repeat in a hoarse voice, "It's me, Zeng Xiasheng, I won't hurt you." Tang Sizhu was very drunk, barely holding up her upper body, looking at him with unfocused eyes, her cheeks wet, and it was hard to tell whether it was from alcohol, sweat, or her tears.
"...Why are you here?" She twisted her body with difficulty, like a rusty spring. After a while, she fumbled for her phone and nodded stiffly. "I called you?...Why did I call you?...You've always refused to see me, so why are you here?"
Zeng Xiasheng didn't want to listen anymore, so he pulled her up and carried her on his back.
"Where do you live? I'll take you back."
Tang Sizhuo lives not far away, about ten minutes away from the river beach. He lives in a high-end apartment where you can enjoy the river view from the balcony.
Zeng Xiasheng remembered the time they sat here watching the sunset. To cheer her up, he'd said they'd find a city near the water, with beautiful sea, river, and lake views, where they could stroll along the shimmering water every day. He thought it was ridiculous, afraid Tang Sizhuo wouldn't even remember, and he'd even expected her to rent this place for such a joke. Tang Sizhuo lay half asleep on his back. She was barely dressed, perhaps from spilling some wine; her pantyhose around her calves were nearly soaked. Zeng Xiasheng held her hands to her all the way, finally warming up a little.
"Why are you drinking alone outside?"
Tang Sizhuo was in a daze, but unusually frank, answering whatever was asked.
"It's so quiet at home... I'm so scared..."
Zeng Xiasheng took out the access card from her coat pocket, swiped it open the apartment door, and stood in the lobby waiting for the elevator to slowly come down.
He knew he should stay away from her, and it would be best if he were a stranger to her, but in the end he couldn't help but ask, "What happened?"
Tang Sizhuo leaned against his neck and shook his head, as if to himself, "Nothing happened, it's all work... It has nothing to do with me, it's not my business..."
"Don't do this next time. It's dangerous." Zeng Xiasheng carried her into the elevator. The man she had met downstairs in the office building a few days ago came to his mind, so he whispered, "At least... at least ask a friend to come along."
Tang Sizhuo didn't answer again. As her body warmed up, she felt more and more weak. She heard his words but couldn't understand what he meant, so she just called his name softly, saying that he was fine, fine, and then asked him again and again why he came just now.
The apartment's interior was meticulously decorated, with soft beige wallpaper, a warm glow from rattan lampshades, and even the air was faintly scented with lemon. Zeng Xiasheng wasn't surprised. After all, her biggest childhood dream had been to have a bedroom where Xiao Tong couldn't enter. Now that she could finally undisturbed, she felt no need to decorate it with excessive care.
Tang Sizhuo had already fallen asleep, so Zeng Xiasheng didn't bother looking for slippers and walked in in his socks. He walked around the sofa piled with shopping bags, hesitated for a moment, and then carefully walked into the master bedroom and put Tang Sizhuo on the bed. The master bedroom had a double bed. Tang Sizhuo had placed two pillows, but it was obvious that she only used the right one. She placed a stuffed bear on the left pillow.
The stuffed toy from over 20 years ago is no longer considered pretty. Zeng Xiasheng picked it up because he wanted to use the cotton inside to fill his soft pillow, so he cut it open and drained the insides, then threw the useless skin aside. It was obviously a piece of unwanted garbage just like him, and since he picked it up, he should be able to use it however he wants. But when the girl asked him tearfully if he had seen his teddy bear, he could only look away and dared not answer. Those clear eyes had never worried about making a living, and they were so childish that they treated a ball of cotton as a living thing. The overflowing sadness seemed not to be asking about the whereabouts of the teddy bear, but to be looking for a lost friend.
So Zeng Xiasheng had to sacrifice his beautiful dream, separate the soft flesh and blood from the old cotton and wadding, put it back into the clean leather bag, sew up the wound with stitches, and return the resurrected teddy bear to her.
He felt strange at the time. They didn't take him to play because he was short of money for clothes and school, but the girl was so rich that she threw away a bag of snacks he had never seen before. He could only have a friend in his imagination.
Tang Sizhu was woken up by her biological clock at eight o'clock. She had a splitting headache and a dry and burning throat. She staggered to the living room and drank two glasses of water before she came to her senses.
Yesterday, she'd tried to force herself to discuss a plan with Zhang Qiuran, but she couldn't control the increasingly sharp tinnitus in her ears, and her mind was gradually becoming hazy. She had to rush out before she lost control. But she didn't dare go home; she didn't want to be alone in an empty place. Tang Sizhuo couldn't remember where she'd bought the wine or how she'd gotten to the river. She felt like she'd been taken away from her senses. Even the time was confusing, and she couldn't understand what the numbers on her phone meant.
In her fragmentary memories, it was Zeng Xiasheng who carried her back.
She lay on his strong back, her mind in a fuzzy state, with only one clear thought: fortunately, she had packed the medicine box before leaving.
Zeng Xiasheng made no effort to hide his presence and even made her breakfast in the kitchen. Since there wasn't much in the fridge, he managed to throw together a pot of mixed porridge and sprinkled some dried shrimp in it to her liking.
Perhaps because he'd vented yesterday, thinking about the nude photos today didn't cause him to panic. Tang Sizhuo sipped his porridge to soothe himself, slowly sorting out the events. If the photos were taken as a casual flirtation, Zhang Qiuran would have been concerned, no matter what the man promised, and it would have been difficult for him to be so aggressive during the initial negotiations. But if they were secretly taken—they separated shortly after their relationship broke down, so the photos were likely taken before that—why would he secretly take nude photos of his wife while they were still in love?
Thinking of this, the familiar feeling of anxiety filled his heart again. Tang Sizhuo's breathing became more rapid. He had to stop for the time being and sent a message to Zhang Qiuran saying that he would go again tomorrow and talk in detail then.
She barely finished a small bowl of porridge and just as she was walking back to her bedroom to rest for a while, she heard a click and Zeng Xiasheng opened the door and walked in. He obviously hadn't expected Tang Sizhuo to be up already, carrying two large bags of food and fruit from the supermarket downstairs and heading straight to the kitchen. Tang Sizhuo remained silent, watching him through the crack in the bedroom door.
Zeng Xiasheng first packed the fruits, vegetables, and milk into the refrigerator, then opened a roll of freshly bought plastic bags, divided the meat into meal-sized portions, and stacked them in the freezer. Finally, he folded the supermarket plastic bags neatly and placed them with her garbage bag. After doing all this, he turned to the sink to wash his hands. Looking down, he found Tang Sizhuo's unwashed dishes.
He subconsciously looked up at the bedroom, and their eyes met. Tang Sizhuo opened the door and walked out again.
"Thank you for bringing me back."
Zeng Xiasheng looked at her calmly and said, "Don't drink so much anymore."
She actually didn't drink much. She was already feeling dazed when she sat by the river. Most of the wine spilled on her body, and only a small amount went into her mouth. She was probably so drunk because the effect of alprazolam had not yet worn off.
Since Zeng Xiasheng thought she was just drinking, she just had to go along with him and smooth things over. But for some reason, perhaps his figure standing in the kitchen triggered the delusion she had when she rented this place, Tang Sizhuo felt a little aggrieved when she heard his words.
Zeng Xiasheng saw her expression gradually becoming depressed, and realized that he had said the wrong thing. He hurriedly said, "I'm saying... Even if things aren't going well at work, at least ask your friends to accompany you. Don't drink alone outside. It's not safe."
Tang Sizhuo's fingers clenched the corner of his clothes, kneading them nervously. After struggling, he finally asked him, "If I was just an alcoholic and something bad happened to me, would you hate me?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
